One day at a time. I hear this brought up in AA a lot. It is a helpful reminder not to get ahead of ourselves. Worrying about the future can become overwhelming. This saying reminds us to scale back, and think in terms of what can I do today. For those in AA that might mean getting to a meeting, or not drinking today.

For someone with mental illness this catch-phrase works as an excellent motivator. It reminds us that today we can choose to recover. That what we do today can bring us closer to a life worth living, and the work that goes into it happens one day at a time.

When each day is thought of as an opportunity, we begin to do the work of recovery.